BMW

Most Fuel-Efficient Hybrids

Find out which hybrid cars get the most miles per gallon.

Taking a wide-reaching portfolio approach to reducing fuel use and emissions, BMW was slow to hybridize or offer a full EV, and concentrated last decade into this on tweaking existing product types. What are these tweaks? Stop-start systems, regenerative braking, low rolling resistance tires, optimized drivetrains, lightweight construction, electric power steering, and even gear shift indicators informing the driver when to upshift or downshift for maximum efficiency. BMW has called these systems “efficient dynamics”—a code word for making large fast engines a little more conservative. And now beyond that, the company is adding in performance hybrids” it calls “ActiveHybrids,” more-efficient diesels, and beyond that yet more, its electrified plug-in i-Series is dedicated to sustainability. The first two i-Series case are being U.S. launched in2014, these are the i3 city car and i8 plug-in sports hybrid. The i3 comes wither in pure EV form, or with a tiny gas engine range extender.